Waking The Fallen | The Dark Masterpiece

Remember when I said I was going to review every A7X album back in that STST review? Well I wasn't lying, only took me 10 months (I promise COE will come sooner).

This is going to be the most redundant thing ever, isn't it?

Analysis:

In terms of drums, it's completely awesome because it's the Rev. That's all that needs to be said.

For bass guitar, we finally have Johnny, providing some of the best basswork in their discography (Second to Nightmare for a reason I'll get to in a bit).

Zacky's riffs got way more Gothenburg in between albums, which is complimented by Brian actually being on all the songs this time, providing for some Iron Maiden-esque interplay. Speaking of Brian, man those solos are so good. Not quite as ridiculous as on COE, but that also makes them more focused, more precise, and in many cases, more sinister.

I love the vocals, I love the vocals, I love the vocals. Matt's best cleans hands down, mixing aggression and melody perfectly, and his screams are great. A sizeable improvement over the garbling from STST (even if I do like said garbling). They just fit so well.

But one area this album falls a bit short in is production. It's a bit brickwalled, nowhere as bad as Death Magnetic or anything, but it could really use some dynamic range. But also, you can't hear Johnny, which is a shame because the baselines are fantastic. If any album needs a remixing IMO, it's this one.

Track-by-track:

Now it's time to lose all remaining objectivity people! Ready for some intense bias? WELL I AM! Just got some deja-vu there.
Waking The Fallen is a pretty good atmospheric opening, letting you know this is going to be as theatrical as possible. Coming off of that is Unholy Confessions which- okay everyone knows this song so I'm just going to say that one minor negative to it is that it feels unfinished. No long solo, no third chorus, etc. Probably becomes one of the lesser tracks IMO for it. Moving on, Chapter Four, another great song and one that perfectly shows the dark and gloomy atmosphere they were going for. At the same time, it probably falls middle of the road on the album for me.

Reminissions really amps up the Gothenburg influence to 10, with thrashy verses and a softer chorus. Also probably my lyrical second favorite. Desecrate Through- THIS SONG IS AMAZING. My favorite A7X song of all time, great riffs, a really catchy chorus, and that climax man. This is why I think Matt's cleans were at their best here. Eternal Rest opens up with almost a preview of COE, except with screaming, before it turns into a crushing neo-thrash song that reminds me of Pantera (Only, y'know, with their own spin on it, as in a tribute done right. Must avoid mentioning that album).

Second Heartbeat is Second Heartbeat. I don't feel the need to explain anything beyond that. Radiant Eclipse is probably the most underrated track on the album, but IMO is better than Unholy Confessions or Chapter Four for that groovy af riff and amazing lyrics, in fact, it's my lyrical favorite on the album. And I Won't See You Tonight Part 1 is still, as someone who can't stand most of their ballads, one of the best metal ballads ever made. Just a great song.

IWSYT Part 2 is pretty good too, with a great horror movie vibe to it. Probably the heaviest song they've ever made (I'd say Breaking Their Hold, but I don't like Breaking Their Hold). Clairvoyant Disease, oh my first "unpopular A7X opinions" (Which wasn't actually that unpopular of an opinion, I was just an attention-whore) was that I thought it was one of their best. And I still do. The album ends with And All Things Will End, aka the last we ever saw of this style of unclean vocals, and one of their best closers (Save Me still wins though, because duh).

1. Desecrate Through Reverence.
2. Second Heartbeat.
3. Clairvoyant Disease.
4. And All Things Will End.
5. Reminissions.
6. Radiant Eclipse.
7. Eternal Rest.
8. IWSYT Part 2.
9. Unholy Confessions.
10. IWSYT Part 1.
11. Chapter Four.
12. Waking The Fallen.

Conclusion:

What else can I say? Waking The Fallen is one of the best metal albums of the 21st Century, and The Best A7X Album. And that's me trying to be objective by nitpicking Unholy Confessions and Chapter Four. I look at this album and I see a band I miss, a band that wasn't afraid to be their own blend of influence and originality, instead of trying too hard to be their influences or too hard to be different, because when either happens you lose the soul behind the music. I like The Stage, I really do, but when I listen to it, I hear a machine. An album devoid of personality or humanity. Same with HTTK, I feel like their soul disappeared. I can look at the first 5 A7X albums and say unequivocally that they feel like the same band to me. The same type of creativity. Sure, I don't like aspects of them, especially the self-titled, but they feel like A7X to me. And Waking The Fallen is the core of that, the album that established the DNA, but without gimmicks like the weird instrumentation of S/T, the oversaturation of ballads of Nightmare, or even the power metal craziness of COE (Though I do kinda like that craziness). When I think A7X, I think this album. And if I'm forced to score it, I couldn't give it anything less than a 10/10.